Love, Loss, and Rejuvenation
by EmilyCCassidy
Summary: A young Twi'lek recently enrolled at the Jedi Academy attempts to heal from her emotional scars, but is the young Padawan she's befriended going to help or hinder her new understanding of life?


"You understand this goes against the mandates that we have set out for this Academy. The older a student Is, the more of a liability." Master Tri'a gave a soft sigh and leaned back in his seat, looking to the woman that stood before the Jedi Council on Dantooine.

"We are coming upon harsh times," said another voice, a horned Zabrak. His cloak rested on his shoulders, and his brown eyes were soft towards the appeal. "Rosa is right. If this child is strong in the Force, she will only serve us well."

"And what of the resources that we must use to train her? My friend, it is not challenging enough to train the students here in secret, constantly fighting those who turn to the dark? Our own students rise and turn against us. A child this old, already considered an adult, is going to have a lot harder time controlling all of her thoughts and emotions. She has no understanding of the Force—"

"She has more than one might think."

The Council paused and turned towards the voice that spoke, a dark-skinned man of older age. He was well respected, and when Master Shardu spoke his opinion, it became the fact and the ultimate decision.

The Zabrak, Kith Michal, slowly snuck back in to add his last word. "I understand that you felt she had strength, Rosa. However, not all who can feel the Force should learn to gain power from it, especially those who have been hurt by many. I understand it hits on a personal level for you—"

"Kith, as I understand, the woman has already been transported to the sanctuary here."

The woman, hands fidgeting by her side, nodded to her elder. "Yes, master."

"Provide her security and safety. Spend your time helping her gain weight and strength. She will be enrolled at the Academy in a condensed course. I understand she has done extremely well on all of her aptitude tests. Make sure she feels welcome here. All of you."

"Yes, master."

The woman bowed, and stepped out, a little bit more confidence in her step. Rosa Sparr had a great lot more of confidence than when she had stepped into the meeting. She had succeeded in convincing them to let the new Twi'lek into the Academy, not only to please the instinct in her head that told her she should be trained in the Force, but also to cover the impulse decision that had caused her to rescue the girl in the first place. In a way in that moment she had adopted her as a daughter and taken all responsibilities. She was safe on Dantooine, but it was only the beginning.

She sat by the river, her back leaning against the rock, feet soaking in the gentle current of the Dantooine waters. Although tranquil, the Jedi enclave had yet to become a home for her. Its atmosphere possessed a peace and consistency unfound on her homeworld of Ryloth, a planet of extreme deserts, icy wastelands, full of rocks and light and darkness separated by a phenomenon of the stars. She had spent years travelling, a life she dared not focus too long on, but never had she been in a location that called itself home to her.

Was it a home?

She wasn't entirely sure what her purpose was here. They had said she was strong in something called the Force. She called it a rebellious nature for being a slave for most of her life, a defense mechanism. They talked about channeling emotions, finding relaxation. Well, relaxation was certainly something she needed, although most of the time meditation turned into brooding as angry emotions found their way back to the surface. They brought her to this place and told her they wanted to individually train her, gave her a master to look up to, small missions to focus her time on. She enjoyed the physical training, loathed the mental training, finding concentration challenging. They said something made her special, different.

For years something had seemed to be different with Kori'una. You tended to change into a different person under the possession of men. Your viewpoints certainly changed in clasps and bonds, thin silk veils over tight garments that outlined her curved figure. She had danced in the cantina for years. Things certainly would change, things had made her different.

Were things different here? Her whole life she had understood her position in society, dancing in cantinas on various planets. Twi'leks were exotic creatures, loved for their beauty. She was loved for her long torso, strong figure, and long lekku, her brain-tails used for far more than the pleasures she had used them for. Kori'una had placed her worth in the money she received, and she had chosen her friends among the handful of properties her masters possessed. Some were killed, some were sold, and some continued travelling with her. They were people she missed, and in the back of her head maybe she thought if she completed this "training" she could hitch a ship across the galaxies and kill every scum that had hurt the people she had grown to love.

Then, that voice in the back of her head. Right. She had come to this place to meditate. It was a secret place for her, a location secluded from a most of the more aggressive fauna, and distant enough from the enclave that it was unlikely for fellow students to come upon her.

Then, there was that other voice, the one saying that most students studying in the Force came as children. She was essentially training on the level of a five-year-old with false presumptions that she could "catch up" and accomplish years of training in only a year or two. Jealousy rose back again through her throat and she growled a little, slapping the water with her hand as she rose and started to pace. She leaned upon a blba tree. Its thick trunk was smooth, but the branches above were excruciatingly sharp, occasionally impaling birds that carnivorous snails preyed upon. She sighed, straightened a white silky veil that slightly covered her belt, framing tight brown pants and the dark blue sandals she had slipped off to soak her feet in the stream.

When she slid back down, she crossed her legs and closed her lids over deep blue eyes. Her face wrinkled for a moment in concentration. Her hairless skin, a snowy white complexion, had remained smooth all these years. Not for her sake, but for the sake of the clientele. It had always been the emphasis of her masters and employers that she remained untouched, and had she ever suffered a scrape or bruise from a client, they were severely fined. Her lips were pink with a strong cupid's bow, shaped but just as useless as her appealing but weak body. What purpose could she possibly serve by the faint possibility of becoming a Jedi Knight? At the time of the offer, when her tutor had found her, "pulled by the presence of the Force", it had seemed like an escape from the life she had been leading for years. Now it seemed like a thick, heavy responsibility, something she had no hope of fulfilling this late in her life.

Kori sat up a little higher, and tried once again to refocus her mind. She perked a little when she sensed a disturbance in the plains behind her. She wasn't concerned, as Dantooine was a fairly peaceful planet. The only people who weren't associated with the Jedi enclave had simple jobs like repairing droids or farming, and as she knew none of them were a threat. They weren't likely to be thugs, but even still, that fear crept up on her from instinct when she heard the deep breathing of a man and heavy footsteps. These footsteps had more of the lightness of a dancer, and it took a moment longer for her to realize the presence coming from behind her, from the direction of the Jedi enclave.

She stood quickly and turned around to see a man about her age, although perhaps a few years older. He wore casual clothes like her, tight black pants and a shirt tucked in around a firm stomach. She noticed the lightsaber in his hilt, and it sparked a small bit of jealousy in her heart. Most of the men she was used to were thick and dirty, angry men who pushed her into walls and stripped her of everything. She sensed something peaceful from him, and it calmed her a little bit. From instinct her hand travelled to the dagger on her hilt, but her hand barely moved, and slowly slipped back down to her thigh.

"Uh, hey." He seemed nervous. That was a little odd. "Master Rosa told me that she had begun to train you. Acted like you were pretty special, flying you out from the other side of the galaxy. Thought I would swing by, give my salutations." He lifted up a tanned hand and swept back his messy auburn hair. "So I'm Rhett."

She swallowed. At first her mind had been entirely preoccupied by looking at him, the first man under the age of forty who seemed, well, _nice. _Kori'una couldn't help but let a small smile slip upon her expression, and a patch of pale rose tinted her white cheeks. "Kori." She looked down at the grass then back up towards him, matching his jade irises. "Are you..a Pawadan?" Her words slow, a little hesitant that she would misspeak.

He chuckled, "I have much more training to do, yes. I don't yet have my own Master, but I will in a few years I'm sure. They filter us pretty strongly. You must be special if you're under training from a woman like Rosa."

Her gaze fell. "Well, Master's not entirely training me now. She's mostly supervising me, making sure I'm getting along well. I haven't been here long." Not to mention, she had been the provider of a plethora of counseling the past several days. She had so many emotions she was trying to process. "Most of my training's been with droids, simulations. I don't think anybody our age has the time to deal with someone like me," she gave a soft chuckle. The man, Rhett, took a step closer to her. She slowly backed up, but he jerked forward and took her by the arm quicker than she had noticed. In an instant she had her dagger out, pushing the blade against his dark flesh.

His eyes looked up towards her, and he kissed her forehead. "Shh." He said, and stroked her arm, moving down and taking her by the hand. Slowly she let the blade slip, breath shaking a little bit as memories flashed back inside of her mind. "Why are you so stressed out? You came here to relax, why is your heart beating so fast? You'll find no threat here." For some reason, she found herself starting to relax, and she collapsed a little against his chest.

He wrapped his arms around her for a moment before he pulled away. "Everyone has much more layers than you would think. You need to peel back those layers and clean out whatever's taunting your spirit."

She glanced up to him, meeting his eyes again. "Thank you."

"You said you're having difficulty finding people to train with? Meet me this evening here again and I can take you on a little adventure." He squeezed her hand a little bit and she nodded. He let his hand slip off of her, and he gave a soft wave as he returned from whence he came.

Rhett Jordan returned back to the Jedi enclave, finding his private quarters. Things were quiet, and as many sessions of training would start soon, he figured that it was a fairly safe time to review his commands. He typed through the encrypted codes on the console in his room, until a small holographic image appeared on a round panel. The figure was a man, tall and thin, wearing a hood over his head. His voice was deep, but in some ways coaxing.

"Have you made contact?"

"Yes, Father." Rhett said, his voice low.

"Good. It has been made clear that this woman is extremely powerful in the Force. If she continues her training, she has the potential of making things extremely challenging for us in the future."

"I understand, Father."

"It is your role then. You must cover your tracks very well, son. Cause her to fall for you. Seduce her, persuade her with the Force. If the Council feels that she is being influenced too much by her emotions and is pursuing a romantic relationship, they will be forced to eradicate her presence from the Jedi Academy and cease all her training. She has much jealousy already flowing in her, much hate, and she seeks revenge. Help her accomplish all of her dreams. In doing so, the Jedi Council will lose all of theirs."

Rhett nodded, and cut the line of communication. His duties were clear.


End file.
